


Viktor Nikiforov: Expert Curse Breaker

by AsagiStilinski



Series: Zine Promos [10]
Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Victorian, Alternate Universe - Witchcraft, Anxious Katsuki Yuuri, Blood, Blood and Injury, Curse Breaking, Curses, Katsuki Yuuri has self-esteem issues, M/M, Magic, Self-Esteem Issues, Supportive Victor Nikiforov, Tarot, Witchcraft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2020-09-25
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:01:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,348
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26644162
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AsagiStilinski/pseuds/AsagiStilinski
Summary: Yuri is cursed, that much he knows for sure, what he doesn't know is weather or not Viktor Nikiforov, the local curse-breaker, can actually help himWhat's Yuri's curse, one may ask?A lack of confidence
Relationships: Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov
Series: Zine Promos [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1551694
Comments: 6
Kudos: 66





	Viktor Nikiforov: Expert Curse Breaker

**Author's Note:**

> Another promo peice for Dreadfully Yours, the YOI penny dreadful and Victorian gothic zine! <3 https://yoidreadfulzine.tumblr.com/

Viktor was in the business of curses

Breaking curses, mind you, not casting them- although he supposed he could do that if he wanted to, but he believed in karma and universal retribution and even if he did occassionally _want_ to curse someone who went out of their way to displease him, he made a very concious effort not to, as he believed in his heart of hearts and in the depth of his soul that it would always inevitably come back on him and Viktor himself went to extremes at times to _avoid_ being cursed, or being hit by the occassional blowback that came from breaking curses

So one could say that Viktor was something of an expert on curses, wich is why he had such a wonderfully long- if not a bit exhausting- client list keeping him busy

Really, it was a miracle he was still able to accept walk-ins at all, but he had always considered it important to keep his doors open to anyone who needed them, and not everyone had the time or forethought to make an appointment

That's exactly how he ended up sitting across from his current client, a beautifull- although clearly nervous- fidgety young man with dark hair, dark eyes, and soft features, who, had they met through any other means, Viktor probably would have attempted to court

Being as it was, however, he forced the idea out of his head, as he had a rule against dating those with curses, it was just far too easy for them to rub off on him if he got too close

"So, Mr. Katsuki, what brings you in today?"

"I... think I've been cursed,"

That much was obvious, but Viktor pressed on anyway

"Do you know who may have cursed you?"

"I think... I did,"

Oh.... well that certainly wasn't something Viktor heard every day

"You... believe you cursed yourself?"

"Um, accidentally yes,"

"Are you a witch? Or a practitioner of some sort of voodoo or occultism?"

"No, but even non-magic users can cast curses sometimes, right?"

"It's.... _rare_... and the emotion behind it must be very powerfull, and the casters most often have some sort of magical properties burried in their bloodlines.... but yes on very rare occassion it can happen,"

The gentleman nodded, still clearly uneasy

"Mr. Katsuki-"

"Yuri, please," the brunette interrupted, wincing a little at himself

"I just.... really, just call me Yuri,"

"Alright then, Yuri," Viktor offered softly

"What exactly are the details of your curse?"

Viktor hadn't thought it was even possible for Yuri to look _more_ uncomfortable, and _yet_....

"It's.... a chronic lack of confidence..."

Now, Viktor had heard of a _great deal_ of curses in his day

He'd heard of everything from your typical bad luck curses and lack of money curses to your considerably more strange like sneezing whenever you hear your name or being followed around everywhere by toads, but a lack of confidence just didn't sound very.... cursey.....

"I know what you're thinking," he interrupted quickly, before Viktor could even say what was on his mind

"I know a lack of confidence doesn't really sound like a curse, that's why I haven't been to anyone about this sooner, but... I've spent most of my life with this problem, and the older I get, the worse it gets, it's becoming... almost crippling," he paused, taking a breath, as though even talking about the curse was bringing him physical discomfort

That much, Viktor knew, _could_ be evidence of a curse.... but it could also just be evidence of anxiety- wich, despite what many believed, Viktor knew _wasn't_ a sign of witchcraft _or_ insanity-, so he wasn't jumping to any conclusions yet

"I'm an artist, I... don't make alot of money but it's enough to get by, recently though my sister got sick, she had to quit working and her medical bills are expensive, my parents run an inn and don't have alot to spare but they're trying... I want-... I _need_ to help out, wich means I need to sell more, I've been told by various people that my art isn't bad, it's good enough to sell, but they won't help me do so or hire me for projects because I have such low confidence in myself, art dealers and gallery owners don't feel like I could do an adequate job selling myself so they don't even bother me, and I always get edged out for commissions by people who are more sure of themselves, even if our art is of essentially the same quality and price, I... can't afford to let things stay the way they are, but I've tried everything I can think of to get better and nothing works, I even talked to an alienist once but to no avail, so... a curse is the only thing I can think of that could be holding me back, I don't know what else it could be,"

"Mmm, I see," Viktor nodded slowly, leaning back in his chair

"Tell me, what makes you think that you're the one who cursed yourself?"

"I don't think it could be anyone else, I don't think anyone else really hates me this much... and I remember when it first started, I think it was an accident,"

"When did it start then?"

"When I was around eight or nine, I'd always been shy and a bit nervous, but when I was younger, I atleast had more confidence, I was more ambitious and self-assured, but.... the first time it happened, I nocked over a vase, my mom wasn't mad but I just felt so guilty.... I blamed myself for it, I called myself stupid and clumsy.. and after that it just.... it just _started_.... it was like a vicious cycle, I would do something wrong and insult myself and my confidence would go down, then because my confidence went down I'd just be more upset with myself, and then I would fail at things more and more and get _more_ upset and lose _more_ confidence... words have power, right? So... maybe I accidentally cursed myself with them, I just... I just hate myself so much now that I can't find a way out of this, I can't find a way to stop, I've tried to stop insulting myself, thinking maybe it'll atleast stop the curse from spreading, but it doesn't really work, alot of times I do it without even realizing it, it's just a reflex,"

"I see," Viktor nodded, leaning back in his chair

"Well, the good news is that I think I can help you, but make no mistake, this is indeed a very hefty curse you've put on yourself and it's going to take alot of work from you as well as from me to break it,"

"I understand," Yuri nodded

"Um... how much do you think breaking the curse will cost...?"

"Mm? Ah... well, lucky for you I have a very easy week ahead of me, so I can start your treatment right away and without much trouble, is thirty cents too high for you?"

" _Thirty cents_?"

"Shall I make it twenty?"

"N-No no!! I just... don't see how you could afford such a low price...."

"Well as I said, this costs virtually no materials, just my time and energy, and I happen to be in abundance of both at the current moment,"

Yuri seemed a little skeptickal, but ultimately reached for his wallet anyway

"Good good, I'll put on some healing herbal tea then, it will make the process easier, in the mean time, please relax, we have alot of work ahead of us,"

The thing was, Yuri had never been cursed at all, atleast not with a confidence-blocker like he thought- though Viktor wouldn't know for a wile yet if he had ever been cursed with anything in general

The problems were all in his head- literally, he was manifesting his own low self-esteem by continuously punishing himself, but Viktor knew from experience that just telling him that wouldn't do him many favors, as he would be unlikely to believe Viktor and just go seeking another curse-breaker elsewhere- one who may be less about breaking curses and more about making money who would see Yuri's troubles a mile away and only take advantage of the young artist

So the best thing Viktor could do- in Viktor's own opinion- was to go about this a little bit differently, break Yuri's curse by helping him heal himself and just call it magic

No one ever had to know, and as long as it worked, that was all that mattered, right?

~+~

_"Remember, do this every hour on the hour for a week, and when the week is up, come and see me again, this is a very powerfull curse, so it's going to take time and alot of repetition to break,"_

That was what Viktor had said, but Yuri still wasn't all too sure this would really work

He had promised Viktor to try though, and if there was one thing Yuri prided himself on, it was the fact that he never broke his promises

So he stood in front of the mirror, inhaled deeply, and started the routine

"I am made of love," he said, tapping his fingers against his wrist

"I am loved," he said, moving the tapping to his other wrist

"I am deserving of love," he said, the tapping moving one last time to his forehead

He had been doing this for the last several hours, just as Viktor suggested- every hour on the hour, staring at himself in the mirror and chanting those three sentences three times

_"The number three is powerfull,"_ Viktor had said, upon Yuri asking why everything was in threes- three sentences, said three times, with three tappings each

He hadn't really understood, but that was to be expected, Viktor was a witch and Yuri wasn't, he probably knew all sorts of things that Yuri was rather oblivious to

He glanced at the clock, sighing softly and deciding to go get the herbal tea Viktor had given him, having instructed Yuri to drink one cup per day

So far he didn't feel any different, but Viktor _had_ said that this was a rather long process, so he supposed he shouldn't expect results right away

He did hope, however, that he would be seeing results _soon_ , he wasn't sure how long his family could last without more help than they were getting....

~+~

"Good Yuri, good, now try with the new mantra- _'I am good, I am perfect, I am made of light'_ ,"

With only minor reluctance, Yuri sighed and started the new chant, tapping against his wrists and forehead with each word, as he always did

"I am good, I am perfect, I am made of light... where do you even get this stuff from?"

"It's magic, don't question it," Viktor chuckled, handing Yuri a cup of tea

Always the tea with him...

"And you're sure it'll break the curse?"

"It's been working better for you so far, hasn't it?"

Viktor had a good point, six weeks into the treatments, and Yuri had seen a vast improvement- not a cure, mind you, but an improvement, and that was certainly better than nothing

Yuri had admittedly been pretty skeptickal when he first agreed to Viktor's unorthodox treatment methods, but as long as they worked....

"And you've been keeping the other part of your treatment in the plan too, yes?"

"Yes, in fact I need to pick up more tea from you wile I'm here,"

"That wasn't what I was referring to but good to know," Viktor chuckled

And that laugh- that soft little laugh made Yuri's face tinge a bit pink as he squirmed and shifted in his chair

"Um, yeah," he replied, clearing his throat

"I've been trying to be really carefull with my words, I've been trying hard not to insult myself,"

"And how is that going for you? Any better?"

"Some yes, thank you,"

"Good, I'm happy to hear it, as I said before, this is a very powerfull curse, it will take time and persistence to break it,"

Yuri nodded his understanding, but couldn't stop his eyes from wandering across Viktor's desk, landing on a deck of tarot cards

He had seen them before, Viktor used them alot in his work- or so he had said when Yuri asked- but he had never actually had a tarot reading himself...

"Do you like them?" Viktor asked, jolting Yuri breifly out of his stupor

"The tarot cards, I mean,"

"O-Oh yes, I think they're lovely, I've always wondered what a reading is like,"

"Would you like me to show you?"

"R-Really...?"

"Sure, I have some time before my next client, it wouldn't be any trouble,"

Yuri nodded slowly, watching in fascination as Viktor took the cards from the box they were in and started to shuffle

"How much extra will I owe you?"

"Hm? None, don't be rediculous,"

"But... surely you can't cover all of this on just thirty cents, how will you make a living? Just because I'm trying to save money for my sister, that doesn't mean I need or want charity or special considerations,"

"I'm aware of that Yuri, but I'm not giving you charity or special considerations, I promise, now do you want a reading or not?"

For a moment, Yuri was quiet, before slowly nodding, focusing on the cards as Viktor spread them out on the desk in front of him

"I choose three, right?"

"That's right, how did you know?"

"It's always threes with you,"

Viktor gave that a laugh, grinning from ear to ear with enthusiasm

"Yes I suppose it is, now... choose?"

Yuri nodded, choosing one card near the far right, another near the far left, and a third right from the middle

"Good Yuri, good," Viktor encouraged warmly, flipping over the first card

_The Heirophant_

He turned over the next

_The Lovers_

And then the third

_The Star_

"Wow, all from the Major Arcana, and all upright too, that's impressive, you must really be in the process of some big changes, although I suppose that makes sense all things considered,"

"What do they mean?" Yuri asked curiously, staring down at the cards

"The Heirophant represents a sort of teacher or coach who has recently come into your life, someone who is here to guide you on your journey, it's important that you listen to this person to the best of your abilities, trust in them, they're here for your benefit, to guide you in the right direction,"

Yuri nodded, staring into Viktor's eyes

He had a feeling he knew who The Heirophant was supposed to be

"The Lovers represent a positive relationship that's going to be blossoming for you, someone who's a sort of soulmate of your's probably, it may or may not be romantic- although there is suggestion that it is- but this person draws out the best in you and you draw out the best in them, at it's core, this is what The Lovers are about,"

Yuri was quiet, swallowing tightly

He wondered if it would be inappropriate if he considered that role as belonging to Viktor too...

True, they weren't lovers, but he _had_ said that it didn't need to be a romantic entanglement, and Viktor _certainly_ was all about bringing out the best in Yuri...

"The Star, finally, is representative of dreams coming true, it's the best card in the deck actually, tell me Yuri, what are your dreams?"

"My... dreams?"

Yuri paused, rubbing the back of his neck a bit

"Well, it's going to sound pretty bland I guess but... I just want to be happy, I want to be _comfortable_ , you know? I don't need to be famous or rich, I just want to make enough money to live comfortably, and to meet someone... someone who I can be with, someone I can love, someone who will relieve me of my loneliness... I want to be with someone and have a family with them, like I said, I know it's pretty bland but-"

"It isn't bland," Viktor argued softly, reaching out to gently taking Yuri's hand and give it a reassuring squeeze

"It's wonderfull,"

Yuri's face tinged pink, his heart beating just a little bit harder, just a tiny bit faster

Instinctively, he would have withdrawn, if it had been only a few weeks ago, he definitely would have withdrawn, but...

But Viktor was an expert curse breaker, and he had been doing his job very well

Yuri's curse wasn't _gone_ , certainly, but it was _better_ , and that was more than Yuri had ever expected to actually happen, and because his curse had lessened, he felt somehow... better... about holding Viktor's hand like this

"You... really think so?"

"Ofcourse I do," Viktor exhaled, the expression on his face showing quite clearly that he wasn't just trying to appease a customer- he really meant what he said

"I'm sure to some it's a very ordinary thing, but as a curse-breaker, I've come to crave the ordinary myself from time to time, when it's coupled with the extraordinary, such as a life with you surely would be,"

Pausing, as though he only just realized what he had said, Viktor's face tinged pink and he began to draw his hand away

"I apologize, that was.. ah... a bit-"

"Honest?" Yuri guessed, smirking just slightly, wich drew a delightfull laugh from Viktor

"Well yes, 'honest' is certainly one of the words I would use to describe my sentiment,"

Yuri took in a deep breath, his teeth sinking down into his bottom lip, and glanced down at the cards in front of him

Heirophants and lovers and wishes....

"Would you like to accompany me on a walk later this evening?" he forced himself to blurt out, the pink dusting his face turning to a full-force scarlet by this point, but if Viktor noticed, he clearly didn't care, his lips curving up into a bright smile and his eyes glittering and sparkling with joy

"Nothing would make me happier," he promised softly, giving Yuri's hand a slight squeeze

"I should get that tea for you though, before I forget,"

Yuri nodded, reluctantly withdrawing as Viktor hurried off to fetch the tea

If Yuri had managed the confidence to ask Viktor for a... a _date_.... then surely, Viktor Nikiforov had to be the best curse-breaker in the entire country, if not the _world_

Yuri couldn't help feeling astoundingly lucky just to know him, for more reasons than one

~+~

"Dammit! Fetch me the dagger- now!!"

Knowing better than to question his instructor, the blonde raced to the side of the room and grabbed the blade from it's place on the nightstand, hurrying back to Viktor's side and watching in pale astonishment as he sliced through his own arm without even a second of hesitation

His sleeves usually hid them, but there were practically constellations of scars decorating his forearms from where Viktor had done this over and over again

Yuri Plisetsky couldn't help wondering if his arms were the _only_ places on his body that were littered like this...

Blood poured out of Viktor's newly minted cut, and he muttered something under his breath as the pentacle on the floor began to blaze with fire, the screaming of the girl on the bed as the curse was stripped away from her was enough to make a lesser man vomit, in Yura's opinion

Thankfully, he was no such lesser man

"Hold her down! The curse is nearly broken!"

"Where the fuck is Christophe when you need him?" the blonde hissed in irritation as he hurried to help restrain the red-headed woman to the bed

The medical restraints they had sniped from the local hospital were about at their limit...

With blood still dripping from his skin, Viktor hurried to grab a handfull of powdered silver from the bowl by the bed and toss it into the fire, the flames reaching a peak as the woman's voice pitched higher, Viktor stumbling backwards and only barely managing to keep himself from hitting the ground as the flames turned silver, then, in a hard snap, blazed gold for the breifest moment, before going out completely

The screaming stopped, and for a moment- a preciously short moment- all was quiet

_"Viktor!?"_

That silence was indeed _far_ too short

_"Viktor are you ok?! Answer me!!"_

"Tend to Mila, she should be fine with some rest," the curse-breaker ordered, the pounding at the locked door was getting louder, and Viktor hurried to grab a strip of cloth from the table and start wrapping his bloody arm as he rushed to the door, fingers pushing his unkempt hair back into some symbalance of order as he answered, trying to act casual

"Yuri, darling, you're early," he greeted with the same thousand-watt smile he always wore in his boyfreind's presence

"Yes... I wanted to come early, I sold a-- you're bleeding!"

Glancing down at his arm breifly, Viktor shut the door behind him as he fully exited the room and came fully into Yuri's veiw

Well, the mystery of where Chris had gotten off to was solved, he was standing at the top of the staircase just behind Yuri, a frazzled and regretfull look on his face

The poor bastard must have tried to stall the brunette from coming in and gotten plowed past anyway

"An accident," Viktor lied smoothly

"I heard screaming," Yuri frowned

"As I said, _mon cher_ , some curses can be a bit difficult to break," Chris supplied from the staircase, but Yuri didn't even bother looking back at him, his attention consumed by Viktor and Viktor alone

"It's just as Chris said, I had a difficult appointment but I assure you, all is well now, you sold something?"

"A... very large painting," Yuri continued with hesitation

"The one I did last week of the orchestra,"

"Oh wow, that must have gotten you a very large payment!"

"It did.. are you sure everything is ok?"

"Everything is fine my love," Viktor promised, taking Yuri's hand and kissing it demurely, earning the same shy blush he had been expecting

"Th-Then.. let me wrap your wound and we'll go? I told my parents to expect us a bit later than usual but-"

"Bandages are in the bathroom cabinet," Viktor promised, expression nondescript as Yuri finally, albeit slowly, stepped away and headed in the direction of the bathroom, giving Viktor the chance to exhale

"You know, _cheri_ ," Chris noted conversationally

"You've been dating the boy for three months now, you can't hide the dangers of your career from him forever... you'll have to tell him some day,"

"I know, I know.... but... he seems to have gotten the impression that my job is mostly giving out tea and tarot card readings, I don't want to frighten him with the truth..."

"And I wonder where he could have gotten that idea from in the first place?"

Viktor's frown deepened, glaring at his freind

Yes, fine, Viktor had done himself no favors by taking on someone who wasn't _actually cursed_ to begin with and just using a bit of... positive thinking and lavender tea to convince him that his confidence could be built back up with a "curse" getting broken, nor had he been wise to keep arranging his schedule around Yuri and claiming not to be very busy so that his lover wouldn't question why Viktor was charging such low fare for his "treatments", but he had never expected things to go on for as long as they had, he had certainly never anticipated having a personal relationship with Yuri when all of it first started, and things had been a little easier back then, he had still been a little lesser known and hadn't even taken on an apprentice yet

Now things were different, and many of his cases were becoming more difficult and dangerous, but he wasn't willing to break the illusion of normalcy he had crafted for Yuri just yet, after all, his boyfreind's wish was just to have a simple and happy life, how could he tell him that, with Viktor, he would never truly have that?

"Come downstairs Viktor, it'll be easier to wrap your arm at a table," Yuri instructed, claiming the other man's attention

"Ah, on my way darl-"

"VIKTOR!"

The door to the bedroom he had just left slammed suddenly open, a frenzied Yura standing in the opening

"Viktor she's sprouting wings!! HURRY!"

"Shit..."

" _Wings_?" Yuri choked, his expression bewildered

"Cat's out of the bag," Chris coughed into his hand, earning an annoyed glare from Viktor

"Yuri my darling, I... may have mistakenly mislead you on the details of some of my tougher cases... but I can't talk just now-"

"It's ok," Yuri promised quickly, his expression warm and sweet, reaching out to gently squeeze Viktor's arm

"I figured you were a little more extraordinary than you were leading on, but how did you phrase it? An ordinary life with an extraordinary person? I find that quite appealing,"

Viktor's smile blossomed, warm and adoring, broken only by another sharp _"VIKTOR!"_ from the doorway

"I'll be done before dinner my love," he promised, blowing Yuri a kiss before hurrying to the bedroom and shutting the door behind him, leaving Yuri and Chris alone

"Christophe?"

"Hm?" Chris sighed as he started marching to the door himself, figuring the curse-breakers could use some help

"You know about curse-breaking don't you?"

"To a degree, but I'm really just a physician Viktor employs for safety, why do you ask?"

"Because," Yuri said, his voice firm and certain

"I want to become a curse-breaker too, after seeing how well Viktor has helped me... I want to help others, and.. I want to help Viktor too, make sure he doesn't get in over his head alone, you know?"

As soon as the words left Yuri's mouth, Chris turned on his heel and headed for the stairs

"Where are you going?" Yuri frowned

"To get some wine, God knows I'll need it for the conversation we're about to have,"


End file.
